Dead End
by MissAvize
Summary: After a dealing with crippling depression and the loss of his girlfriend Kevin decides to commit suicide, only to wake up in an afterlife where everything is the same, only a little bit worse. When he finds out his girlfriend killed herself not long after he sets off on a road trip with his only friend only to meet Eddward, a genius who may be able to prove he could be happy dead.
1. Chapter 1

_TW: This whole thing is based on a suicide afterlife. Heavy mention of suicide._

_Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters. The plot is based on the short story Kneller's Happy Campers by Etgar Keret. _

_The title of the short story is misleading. It doesn't end happily. If you want to stick through this to the end don't read it, it'll spoil this for you._

* * *

It was driving him nuts.

The constant drip of the faucet, set high above his current position, told Kevin that maybe he should have fixed the fucking thing before it became impossible. His fingers walked along the tile floor, through the vomit that filled his nostrils, trying to somehow to pull his body over to the bathroom sink, to somehow make the noise stop so he could spend his last few of life in peace. He could feel something hit the back of his hand, his fading vision told him it was the amber pill bottle he had been carrying around with him, reading the label as he waited for the medicine to kick in. No matter how many times he twitched his hand it rolled back to him and the last thought that occurred to him before he closed his eyes was he would probably shit himself, he read somewhere that when people die that's what happened, and he was mortified.

When his eyes finally opened he was at what appeared to be a terminal, the sound of a train in the distance. It wasn't until his eyes started to focus that he noticed something was off about the crowd. In his hand he could feel a piece of paper and when he finally contained his confusion enough to register his surroundings he noticed all it was was 'D2'.

"Letter D number 1" sounded a voice over an intercom, and he clutched his paper tighter in his hand, crumpling it a little. It was then he found out he had been sitting next to someone because they stood up, clutching a similar piece of paper in their hand.

"I guess they mean me." the stranger said, his mouth contorted into a strained almost-smile. The man was taller than Kevin, thinner, and probably around the same age (24). He had dark hair that almost looked blue when the light hit it just right and a thick accent that forced Kevin to focus a little harder to properly hear was the man was saying. Before he could replay, however, the tall stranger had already made his way to the little office at the end of the rows of wooden benches.

"What is this? The fuckin' DMV?" Kevin said aloud, more to himself than anyone else. There weren't many people in the area, but each of them had the same sad, sunken look and he could have sworn one the people walking around, directing people in another row of benches, had the back of their head blown out, like a wound from a gun but before he could do a doubletake at the stranger, however, the voice over the intercom sounded again, this time calling his number.

He entered the office that he had seen the dark-haired male enter to find an older brunette woman with her hair pulled up into a tight, orderly bun typing away on a computer that looked straight out of the 90's, the monitor probably weighing more than desk the woman sat at. Before Kevin could speak the woman held up her hand to her pursed lips to indicate she needed silence and flicked her wrist to then point to the folding metal chair on the other side of the desk. The movement of her hand revealed something Kevin wasn't sure he saw, something that had been happening a lot in the last ten minutes, and Kevin sat down pondering the puckered discolored scar running down the woman's wrists.

"Who were you?" the brunette woman said, her face devoid of any emotion. Her question came without any notice and made Kevin jump at the sound of her raspy voice.

"E-e-excuse me? Who was I?" Kevin stammered, not sure he heard correctly, causing the woman to look up at him from her old computer and shoot him a glare.

"Yes, who were you? Everyone was someone before they killed themselves. What was your name?" her tone was professional but Kevin began to get the feeling she was beginning to get annoyed, something about the way she held her hands over the bulky keyboard cushioned the initial shock of her comment. Something about it made sense, like finding a puzzle piece to a puzzle you had abandoned months ago.

* * *

He was slowly getting use to the afterlife.

According to the ratty, yellowed calendar Kevin kept in his room it had been nearly forty-five days since he had arrived on the train, a packet of information in his hand that listed his apartment number, job information, and some general information about a support group (something he had went to twice and gave up). Everything was just about the same in this world, only a little bit worse. The days were always hot and cloudless, the nights starless and cool, the food never quite the right temperature, and everything looked as though you were looking through a pair of dirty glasses. Worst of all, however, was the fact that you couldn't smile.

Kevin worked at a bar called The Dead End, the manager was an asshole but there weren't really stringent rules and nobody cared about how poor the customer service was so Kevin fell rather quickly into the monotony of everyday, waking up around five in the evening to get ready for his shift, missing Nazz, drinking the stale beer as he served the customers (never getting more than a little tipsy which only made him feel more melancholy than he felt sober), and going home only to repeat himself the next day. He contemplated killing himself again, wondering where he would end up if he did, but who would want to go through that shit again? And this continued, day in and day out, once in awhile he thought he had made a connection with a customer, had a deep conversation that could have resulted into some kind of friendship, but that was always proven wrong as the nights continued and the people started sitting further and further away from the bar (or going to a different bar all together).

"Rolf would like a beer." came a voice as Kevin wiped down some of the liquor bottles on the shelf behind his work station, waving a hand over his head to show he had heard the patron.

"I hope this is okay, it tastes the least like piss in this dump." Kevin placed the nondescript bottle on the table in front of the person at the bar, not focusing on who he was serving as he took a couple of the empty bottles from a little further down the counter and mumbling under his breath.

"It is you! Stranger from the train station who Rolf met the first day. How is it you have come to be in this town?" the accent made his words a little hard to understand over the sound of the jukebox in the back, which contained no song anyone with a brain would call 'good', most just generic non-hits from the 80's, but as Kevin looked up from what he was doing the first feeling of recognition he felt since he died dawned on him as his eyes fell on the stranger with the blue-almost-black hair from his first day dead.

_First day dead, sounds more like a bad death metal band._ Kevin smirked to himself as he took a drink from the sort-of dirty glass he always used when he worked, pulling a stool up near the train station acquaintance.

"I don't know. I was still trying to figure out what the fuck was going on when I got manhandled by some guy with a gunshot wound and I ended up here." he shrugged, his expression souring with another sip of the stale lukewarm beer. Rolf, which Kevin assumed was the man's name based on the fact he seemed to refer to himself in the third person, took a swig from his own beer and acted refreshed, causing Kevin to look on him in disbelief.

"In the Old Country serving warm beer was a practice used to keep the sheep-man from destroying business." Rolf seemed sincere, which confused Kevin even more finished his drink in one fell swoop.

"I'll take your word for that dude." He placed his glass into a nearby box, which would be sent to the kitchen to be cleaned when it came time to close up the bar. Rolf nodded enthusiastically, relaying a story about a pub in his hometown that fell victim to the sheep-man, something Kevin listened to intently, enjoying the distraction.

* * *

Rolf came back every night that week, and every night that week he waited for Kevin to close up the bar so they could drive back to his apartment and drink more while he told Kevin about stories from the Old Country. It was the closest thing to enjoyment Kevin had, sitting on Rolf's sofa (which smelled like dust and made you sneeze at least twice an hour) watching his pig Wilfred run around and listening to some of the most extraordinary stories he had ever heard.

"He killed himself too, you know? He missed Rolf." Wilfred was laying in Rolf's lap, sleeping peacefully as his owner took another sip from the bottle of warm vodka as Kevin looked at him in disbelief. "I've had him since he was born, we've been inseparable since then. One time Rolf brought him to work and he -"

"I know, I know. I've heard this story, Rolf. Twice." Kevin said, sinking down into the couch, the dust the movement stirred up making him sneeze.

"Wilfred probably missed Rolf and stopped eating, when he showed up at my doorstep I swear it was half the weight he was when he died." Rolf continues, gazing lovingly at the pig in his lap. It was clear that Rolf loved the pig, and weird that such an emotion could exist considering where they were. Kevin missed Nazz.

It was right before Kevin killed himself that Nazz left him, moving out without uttering a word and when Kevin returned home from work that evening it was the last thing he had expected. He had always been at least a little depressed, even since he moved to Peach Creek and met the young blonde, but maybe she was expecting to save his tortured soul. She didn't and got fed up. Kevin tried, he really did, he tried harder than ever towards the end of their relationship, but he could feel her slipping away. He lost his job a week later, not able to get out of been after she left. Kevin shook his head, trying to clear the thoughts of Nazz. He was dead now, she was not, and this wasn't some shitty romance movie with love that transcends all boundaries. It was real life, sort of.

"Whatever dude, I'll be right back." He said, lifting his body off the couch. He had been at Rolf's apartment since five that morning and it was now nearing nine, the only grocery store in the town was now open and Rolf didn't have anything Kevin considered edible in his fridge. "If you need anything from the store let me know now." Rolf shook his head no and Kevin made he way out the door.

* * *

"Kevin? Jesus fucking christ, it's Kevin." At first Kevin didn't see the origin of the voice, but as the stout dark-haired man with blue eyes rounded the aisle, a smug look on his face and a red shopping basket hung over his arm. Kevin rolled his eyes, a wave of irritation rolling over him.

"Eddy, what are you doing here? You were alive last I knew." Kevin said, forcing conversation as the stubby man moved closer to him, fighting the urge to take a long step back.

"Always the jokester, but really. How've you been?" Eddy patted Kevin roughly on the back, causing Kevin to almost drop what he was holding and shoot a glare at Eddy. "I know, I know. How can anyone be in this shithole. If I knew this was what I was signing up for I would have totally not followed Nazz to the grave. Have you seen her, by the way? Your death really shook up the cul-de-sac, really me really think if life was worth living, y'know?"

Kevin didn't hear anything at all after Nazz's name, his heart almost dropping into his stomach as he tried to wrap his brain around the word his annoying ex-neighbor had spoken. Something finally clicked in his brain and he dropped what he was holding and broke out in a run almost knocking Eddy over.

"Hey Kevin! After you died I washed your car for you, think you could pay me for that sometime?" Eddy yelled after him, but Kevin had already left the store and was making his way back to Rolf's apartment.

* * *

"You go to the market and come back with these elaborate plans all because you want to find this Nazz-girl? You expect Rolf to uproot Wilfred and go on this hanky-panky road trip?" He wasn't angry, just confused as Kevin stood there shuffling from foot to foot, trying to hurry this spiel along. He didn't want to be there anymore, he wanted to be on the road, and if he had wheels he wouldn't have bothered Rolf but the only car he had access to was sitting in the driveway outside.

"Listen dude, I just found out the girl I love is somewhere in this wretched place and this could be my only chance at some sort of happiness or normalcy." Rolf's brow furrowed, as if he was concentrating on something really hard as Kevin stood in the middle of his living room, impatient. "Listen dude, let me put this another way; do you have anything better to do?"

"Two rules, Rolf drives and Wilfred gets the gun of shot." If Kevin could have smiled, it would have been dazzling.

* * *

"Dude, I cannot believe you were serious about that." Kevin pouted from the cramped back seat. He had tried to sit various ways, but the small back seat kept feeling more and more cramped, even with his legs stretched to the side. Wilfred was had his front legs up on the door, trying to stick his head out the window was they drove but Kevin and Rolf both tried to roll the window down and couldn't get it cracked more than an inch.

"Rolf does not kid when it comes to Wilfred or his comfortable transportation in a vehicle." Kevin stuck his tongue at the driver, his eyes on the landscape as the car sped down the road. There wasn't really anything in sight, just sand and debris, they had been on the road for quite a while now and Kevin had counted at least fifteen toilets, twelve bathtubs, and more mattresses than he could keep track of.

Kevin tried to close his eyes and get a nap as they drove, unable to do so because of the state of the road. Just as the car hit a relatively smooth stretch of road it was ruined by cracked pavement, something that didn't seem to bother the pig. "How is that little shit able to sleep?" Kevin asked irritatedly, his lips twisting into an almost jealous expression as he looked at the sleeping pig, his chin resting where the headrest should have been on the passengers seat.

"He's always been a sleeper with heavy eyes." It was now nearing late evening, the sun had been setting for what seemed like forever and Rolf was had switched on the headlights already, though they weren't really necessary yet. The scenery hadn't changed at all from the time they left their town and Kevin stopped watching out the window, making small talk with Rolf as they went. When the sun finally set Kevin looked up at the sky, a view he didn't often get and a view that shocked him everytime he saw it. The starless sky looked off, incomplete, and caused a melancholy feeling to settle over the world, a feeling that left a thickness in his chest. _Maybe Rolf is the only person in this fucking place that can be happy, can we even find her?_

"Manure!" Rolf exclaimed, shocking Kevin out of his train of thought. It was clear as his eyes fell on the driver what the problem was, the headlights had dimmed and were flashing on and off. "I must stop this vehicle and inspect the innard of this contraption!"

"Dude, not that big of a deal, it's not like we'll hit anything, and there's enough contrast between the sand so we can keep going." The lights flickered again, staying off this time, causing Rolf to hit the dash. Wilfred stirred but didn't wake up. Kevin watched the road in front of him, Rolf still ambivalent about his course of action as they made their way in the darkness, pounding on the dashboard again, causing the headlights to flicker on just in time for them to see the outline of a person they were about to collide with.

Rolf hit the brakes, turning the wheel and skidding to a stop in the sand to the left of the road. "Just keep driving, he says." he muttered under his breath as Kevin jumped out of the car and ran towards the body laying on the ground, illuminated by the now fully functional headlights.

The man was slender, almost frail looking, and was curved into the fetal position on the uneven cement, he was dressed in a pair of grey corduroys and white button up short-sleeve shirt, a red argyle sweater vest over it, on his head there was a black sock cap with two white lines. Kevin bent down, his hand slowly moving towards the shaking young man, afraid he was hurt, but before he could touch him his green eyes popped open and he slowly pushed himself off the ground.

****"Good gracious!" the black-haired young man exclaimed, pulling his lower lip between his teeth revealing a rather noticeable gap between his front teeth.


	2. Chapter 2

_I really love the beginning of this chapter and most of the end of it, but_

_some of the stuff in the middle felt a little slow to me, I hope you don't_

_think so. It's really hard to imagine these characters in such a different_

_environment from Peach Creek, y'know? I hope I get their personalities_

_enough to make it believable. Please, leave reviews and stuff, I love to_

_read what people thing. You can also submit your thoughts anonymously_

_if you have a tumblr, my blog is MissAvize, much like on here. ~ Enjoy!_

* * *

Rolf and Kevin were sitting on a mattress they had pulled over from a little ways up the road, the sky was dark and they were now illuminated by a fire, made from a couple chair they had found close by. The stranger had started the fire with ease and had there been more light Kevin would have watched closely for future reference.

"My name is E-e-ddward" the man they almost hit stammered, his face looking ghastly in the shadows created by the fire. He had refused to sit on the old mattress, claiming unsanitary conditions or something of the like, so he pulled a tarp out of a rolling suitcase he had been dragging with him and placed a small stack of clothing to sit on and cushion the hard ground. "However, I would prefer to go by Double D or Edd, if you gentlemen do not mind." He pulled his bottom lip between his teeth once again, revealing the gap.

"So, Double D Ed-boy, what brings you here?" Rolf asked, Wilfred was still sleeping soundly in the car barely jarred by the almost-vehicular-homicide in which his owner almost took part in. Edd looked across the fire, focusing on the people he was sitting with for what may have been the first time. Kevin was sitting next to Rolf, leaning back to rest on his elbows, watching the kid squirm. _He must not be use to very much attention._

"You s-s-s-see, Rolf, I has been abandoned by the side of the road by my former ride, I'm looking for the people in charge of this...place. You know, the ones that ran the station we star-" Rolf cut him off, shaking his head.

"That's not what Rolf meant, silly Ed-boy. How did you kill yourself?" Eddward looked taken aback by the abruptness of the question and Kevin just shrugged. There wasn't much about where they were that called for social tact or manners, most people didn't give a shit here, and Kevin had grown use to Rolf's boldness and lack of boundaries; he had asked Kevin the same thing the second day they knew each other. Rolf himself had a permanent raised ring around his neck from the noose he had hung from the rafters in his barn, but he never divulged the reason behind it, and Kevin didn't care enough to ask.

"What? I did not catch the thing you were saying?" Rolf added to the conversation, Edd's lips were moving, but even with the absolute stillness around them he wasn't speaking loud enough to be heard over the crackling of the flames. Kevin watched as Edd began to rub his hands together nervously, as if he were applying lotion to them.

"I-I-I didn't kill myself. Suicide was never something I had intended." he stammered, his eyes downcast as he spoke, Kevin wasn't sure if he was just nervous or if he didn't want to see the looks of disbelief on their faces as they looked from one another back to their nervous acquaintance. "Which is why I have been searching for the people in charge..." he let his voice trail off before he finished his sentence, too flushed to go on.

"Dude, you don't need to go into cardiac arrest, calm down." Kevin chuckled as Edd grew more and more flustered. "Who knows where you end up if you die here, and there's no real reason to find out." A few deep breaths later his face was closer to a normal color and Kevin was listening to another story from the Old Country about a bat that grew to the size of a mountain lion and had an appetite for goats and small children.

"T-t-that doesn't sound r-r-right. The l-l-largest species of b-bat is Acerodon jubatus, otherwise know as the Giant golden-crowned flying fox and although it does have a considerable wingspan, almost up to six feet in length, it's nowhere near big enough or heavy enough to carry off or feed on small children or goats. It wouldn't even want to, its diet consists of mainly figs and similar fruits. It's found in the forest of the Philippines, so there isn't even a possibility that it was what the villagers saw." Eddward stuttered at first but as he continued to speak his voice became calm and confident, like he really knew what he was talking about and enjoyed the subject. Kevin and Rolf just stared at the stranger, and a blush erupted as he took in the looks of the two on the mattress. "I'm sorry, I was babbling, wasn't I?" Kevin burst out laughing.

"Dude, he just called bullshit on you." Kevin choked, not able to catch his breath.

"No, no. I didn't. I'm sure his uncle saw something, but there just aren't bats of that size anywhere in the world, that was all I was saying." Eddward pulled his hat over his eyes trying to cover his embarrassment as Kevin laughed even harder, causing Rolf to join in as well regardless of the slight irritation he felt at being told his story 'doesn't sound right'.

"So, you coming with us?" Kevin asked when his breathing and voice was kind of under control. "We're not going anywhere specific, but I am looking for someone who committed suicide too." His eyes shifted, it was his turn for blood to run to his face, coloring his cheeks, and Eddward nodded at his question.

"If I am allowed to accompany you, I will definitely become part of this caravan." And that was how the night ended, after that they got ready to lay down around the fire continuing some small talk until one of them fell asleep, then another, and Kevin was left up wondering more about what had caused Eddward to end up where he was than the whereabouts of Nazz.

* * *

"Wilfred is not sitting in the back, Rolf will not have that." It was harder to understand Rolf when he irritated, his words rushing out quickly and with conviction, but Kevin just stood there unimpressed, looking at the crowded back seat.

"Listen dude, I get that you love the fucking pig, but there is no way two human bodies are going to fit in the backseat." Kevin crossed his arms, the sun beating down on them uncomfortably as he tried to hurry along the tiff, wanting to get into the car. The car wasn't much cooler than outside, the air conditioning system was broken, but being out of the sun and having the warm wind on his face was better than baking in the sun, and Wilfred was able to get the window down in the middle of the night and make his way over to Rolf while everyone was asleep.

Eventually Rolf gave up in his endeavor and Kevin was soon sitting in the passengers seat, his hand hanging out the window as Rolf drove, muttering to himself about the relationship between a man and his pig. In the backseat Eddward had his seatbelt pulled snugly around his body, pressed against the door as Wilfred ran around, circling and trying to get comfortable. Every time Wilfred got within a foot of Eddward he would attempt to make his body smaller, shrinking away from the four legged animal, causing Kevin to smirk at the guys priceless expression.

"I am looking for the people in charge of our current situation." Eddward chimed to the woman behind the counter with the bluish complexion as she poured Rolf some coffee, they had already placed their orders for breakfast in the small roadside diner and the woman was already side-eyeing Edd, clearly perturbed he wiped down the seat with some sort of disinfecting wipe before sitting down. There was no other people in the diner, the only people there the waitress and the cook, and they weren't even sure the rundown place was open until they entered and smelled cooking food.

"Hun, there are no people in charge here, just me and my husband as it's been for quite a while, so I guess we are kinda the bosses." She replaced the pencil she had used to write down their orders with behind her ear, Kevin had already asked her about Nazz and gotten nowhere with either of them.

"No, you misunderstand. I do not mean the people in charge of this establishment, I mean the people in charge of this world, the ones who places us into our little niches and run everything." He pressed the fingers of his right hand to his temples as he spoke, quickly exhausted by the exchange and Kevin noticed he wasn't stuttering, as he had been all morning. _Maybe it's just us that makes him nervous._

Throughout breakfast Kevin caught himself looking at Eddward more and more, and pointedly looking away, something that didn't escape Rolf's notice, as Eddward got up to use the lavatory Rolf made mention of it. "Why do you keep looking at Double D Ed-boy?"

Kevin just shrugged, turning his head as he spoke to hide the slight redness spreading across his cheeks. He wasn't quite sure why he kept looking at the dude, and he wasn't about to make excuses either. Picking up his fork he pushed around the remainder of the apple pie on his plate, the crust was a little too soggy for his liking but the apples were sweet enough.

When they climbed into the car Kevin slid into the back and helped Wilfred into the front seat, waving off Rolf's shock as Eddward slid in next to him, pulling his hat around so the brim was in front and angling it down. There was little room, their knees pressed up against each other and Kevin wasn't sure what to do with his arms, but Eddward looked more comfortable with Wilfred in the front seat. He mouthed thanks to Kevin, unsure if he had seen it, and Kevin had but made no move to acknowledge it afraid that if he lifted his head his blush would be more evident.

* * *

"I had watched this documentary once, it was about people who owned pets that were wild animals. This man who worked for this agency that was a combination of all emergency services was relaying an incident about a call he had gotten once about a strange snake. He arrived at the home and these two young children pointed to where the snake they had been playing with was located, in the garage." He spoke animatedly to Kevin, who was actually interested in the conversation, his stutter long forgotten. Rolf had fallen asleep half an hour ago with Wilfred cuddled under his arm on the abandoned mattress they located prior to settling down for the night, Edd on his tarp once more. "Imagine the flabbergasted expression on his face when he sees that the snake these two children had been playing with was a bitis gabonica, a gaboon viper, which is the worlds heaviest viper and has the highest venom yield of any venomous snake. This particular specimen had been handled by these children for quite a while and hadn't even shown aggression! It could have killed them in such a minute amount of time."

"You're shitting me." Kevin exclaimed, his face amused and slightly horrified at the thought of finding a child of his own playing with a venomous snake with a habitat half-way around the world. "I'd have killed the bullshit owner who let the thing out if it had been my kid."

"Do you have kids?" Edd asked curiously, looking up from the soda he was sipping, his eyes glittering in the fire. Kevin shook his head, a melancholy expression on his face as the realization that he would never have children occurred. "I-I-I'm s-sorry, I wasn't t-t-thinking." Kevin raised a hand, indicating it was okay, and Eddward let out a shutter as the chill of the night penetrated his clothing and he began to rifle through the clothing he was sitting on for a sweater.

"Dude, catch." Kevin called out, taking off the green thermal hoodie he was wearing and tossing towards him, not listening to any of the other's protests. "Just put the damn thing on, I was starting to get hot in it anyway." Eddward pulled the hoodie long, his considerably smaller frame swimming in it as he tried to find his arms in the sleeves.

* * *

Eddward returned the hoodie in the morning, using the renewed light to find his own sweater, holding the piece of clothing out to the redhead and muttering his gratitude with a blush on his face. _Why is this dude so cute?_

Before Kevin could assess the thought he had just had he pulled the hoodie on, Rolf's voice sounding annoyed over by the car, scolding Wilfred. "Wilfred knows to do his business outside of the car, yet there is a pile of his business right in the backseat of Rolf's vehicle. Explain yourself!" The offender in question just sat in the dirt, staring up at the finger pointing at him.

"Fear not! I am w-w-well equipped for this sort of s-s-situation." Eddward pulled a pair of rubber gloves from his suitcase, which had been sitting in the open trunk as they were packing up, as well as some cleaning supplies and made quick work of the mess in the back. It wasn't long before they had all piled in the car once more and were making their way down the only road they could see. In the distance was their destination, a small town much like the one there were in when Kevin had heard the news about his ex. It took a couple hours before they reached it, and it was spent in silence other than Rolf's occasional scolding towards his pig.

When they arrived in the dirt hole they parked the car and decided to go on foot, splitting up to cover more ground Rolf and Kevin agreed to ask about the people in charge if Edd asked about Nazz, something Edd insisted he would have done was around lunch time, when they had decided to meet back up at the car and find food, that Kevin heard shouting.

As he arrived at the origin of the noise the scene made him pause momentarily. Eddward was pushed up against the car by what appeared to be a biker with a pebbled texture to the skin down the left side of his face and body (which was visible under his ugly leather vest). "What did you say?" the man yelled, drawing the attention of some people close by. Edd was clearly terrified with his head pressed against the hood of the car by the man.

"Dude, what the fuck?" Something in Kevin snapped and forced him to act. He slammed his shoulder into the man, causing him to release Edd and stumble backwards. Kevin didn't allow him to recover, the guy could most likely massacre the both of them if he allowed it, and jumped at the biker, his balled fist colliding with the stranger's jaw just as a man dress as the police and Rolf simultaneously showed up. "You okay, dweeb?" Kevin turned to face Edd, who was shuddering by the car, as the policeman apprehended the other guy, the witnesses filling him in on what had occurred.

* * *

"Now, I'm going to have to ask you to fill out a report on the incident." They were down at the small police station in the town, it looked more like the little Sheriff's places in old westerns than an actual police station, but they offered Rolf, Edd, and Kevin food for free so they didn't mind, picking at the sandwiches one of the deputies brought back from his lunch run. Kevin sat at a desk, the last to fill it out, his knuckles swollen from their collision with the guys face. The cop had handed him a folder with blank and filled out reports and Kevin's curiosity peaked at the sight of the stack of completed forms.

As Kevin read through some of the incident reports filed in the past, the police officer still talking to Wilfred as if the pig was a small child, something familiar caught his eye. The handwriting on the page was exactly as he remembered it, understated and simple, her name written right above an address that Kevin quickly jotted down on a piece of paper. When he finished filling out the report he approached the police officer, the question spilling out of his mouth in a rush. "Do you know how to get here?" After all, how many Nazz van Bartonschmeer's could there be?


	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry if it's a little cliche or whatever but I totally like it. It had a lot of fun writing this_

_chapter, I actually wrote up to the diner first then the ending. Sorry it took so long for_

_me to get this up, I had finals and all then and job interviews and shit like that. Without_

_further ado, here is chapter three of Dead End! I thank those who've stuck around and_

_read the last two chapters and are continuing to read. I hope you guys enjoy and if you_

_find the time or inspiration to review I would greatly appreciate any feedback you have._

_I am still working with world's shittiest word processor, so please continue to bear with_

_me for now._

* * *

Edd was sitting with his knees tucked into his chest, his slender arms encircling them and his face still showed the stress and fear from earlier in the day. He had filled in Rolf and Kevin after they left the police station, directions to the address listed on the incident report in hand, about how furious and violent the man became at the mention of the People in Charge and how it progressed to such brutish violence in a blink of an eye. Rolf had checked out soon after that, their camp much the same setup as the previous nights, falling asleep with ease while Kev sat up reading and re-reading the directions on the piece of paper and sneaking glances at the other active male, who slowly looked like he was getting more and more depressed.

"Dude, you look like you're going to off yourself." His voice was light as he folded the piece of paper and slipped it into his pocket, his eyes never leaving Edd's frame, which shuddered under the casual joke.

"I am merely grasping at straws, I've been avoiding the complexity and weight of our current situation but the truth is that even if this caucus race eventually produces results and I find these people in charge what is the likelihood of being able to talk to them? What is the likelihood that they believe me if I do get to talk to them?" Edd's body began to shake as stifled sobs rippled from his chest, leaving Kevin at a loss for words. Kevin's next movements were acted out of impulse, getting up and closing the distance between their two mattresses and sitting down next to the boy. Double D fit perfectly under his arm, Kevin's muscular limb wrapping gently around Edd's small frame and pulling him close, and something about it astounded Kevin. Kevin always considered physical intimacy as a slightly awkward and uncomfortable experience, he loved Nazz but whenever they did anything that required physical closeness it was like forcing two mismatched puzzle pieces together.

That was how they stayed, Edd slowly turning his body more and more into Kevin's, sobbing until he tired himself out. Kevin wasn't sure when the smaller male fell asleep but when he did notice he didn't relinquish his hold on Edd, the closeness too comfortable for him to give up right away, and it wasn't until he passed out that the two finally separated as Kevin's grasp relaxed as sleep overtook his body.

"F-f-for my embarrassing actions last n-n-night, I sincerely ap-p-pologize." Edd whispered to Kevin as Rolf got up to situate Wilfred in the car and pack the trunk with the little bit of stuff they had. Edd's hands went up to the hat on his head and he began to fuss with the way it fit, taking it off and putting it back on revealing the slightly wavy almost-black hair underneath.

"Don't worry about it, dude. Everyone has their moments." Kevin shrugged, turning his head away from Edd so he couldn't see the blood rush to his face. "I'm not complaining." Kevin bit the inside of his cheek but the words were barely audible and Edd was too busy with his hat to have heard them anyway. It wasn't long before they were back in the car and heading with more of a purpose and a destination in mind. The trip would take at least three more days, longer because they couldn't drive at night, but Kevin's excitement wasn't overflowing like he had initially expected, instead he kept catching nervous glances as the boy who was sharing the backseat with Wilfred, his body pushed up again his own door to give the pig more room, something that didn't escape Rolf's notice.

* * *

"Sock-headed Ed-boy." Rolf said, his eyes fixed on Kevin's face as they started eating their breakfast at another rundown side-of-the-road diner, his gaze making the other uncomfortable. "There is something wrong with him, Rolf thinks his whole spiel about the People in Authority makes him crazier most of the people who ended up here. How do you kill yourself by not-on-purpose?" Rolf picked up a piece of bacon, glancing guiltily towards the car where Wilfred was eating his own breakfast in the front seat of the car.

"I don't know man, he's okay. There's got to be something about this whole P-I-C thing, though, right?" Kevin shrugged looking at his food and pushing the eggs around his plate with a fork. His head was down as Edd ran by so he wasn't able to see the tears in the corner of his eyes. "Dude, he heard you." Kev jumped up, his tone angry as he pulled out his wallet to pay the woman, who held her hand up to stop him.

"No need to do that, sweeties, the tiny one with the sock hat covered your meals and tip." Her voice was raspy, lips blue, and eyes judging them as Kev collected his wits and went after Edd, who was fumbling with his things he had retrieved from Rolf's car.

"Edd, don't do that. C'mon man." Kev shouted, running lightly toward him. As he got closer he could see the puffiness from his eyes and the veins in his arms as the weight proved too much to handle and he began to rely on the wheels to drag his bag along the ground. "Edd, he didn't mean that. You know Rolf is lacking a filter between his brain and his mouth sometimes, but he's harmless, I swear. C'mon I'll get him to apologize."

"That w-w-won't be necessary K-k-kevin. I fully unders-s-stand how I sound. G-g-go find Nazz, you do not need my c-c-company for that." His voice was a little raspy as he continued to walk, dragging the bag behind him. Kevin reached out and grabbed it, pushing the handle down and carrying it with easy. They walked in silence or a little while, Kevin glancing at Edd every few steps.

"Just travel with us a little longer, it'll be more efficient and less lonely." Kevin offered as Rolf pulled the car up next to them, driving slow to keep pace. Kevin reached out with his free hand and grabbed Edd's wrist to stop him from walking, causing the other to turn his head and lift his other hand to wipe the fresh tears from his eyes.

"Come on smarty-pants Double of the D's, Rolf is sorry for the comment he made in the diner back there and thanks you for paying for the meal. I have this disease known as feet-in-the-mouth." Rolf parked the car and pulled the little lever to open the trunk for Edd's back. Edd moved, without a word, and climbed into the backseat, keeping his head turned out the window as Kevin put his bag back into the trunk before climbing into the backseat himself. The rest of that morning was quiet and awkward and everyone could feel the thick atmosphere in the car until Rolf told a story of a naked man who would eat nothing but strawberries and okra from the Old Country, and his various shenanigans.

* * *

The next two days passed quickly and without much variety, Rolf told his stories, Wilfred smugly inhabited the front seat of the car, and they continued to camp out on debris found on the side of the road. The only differences were Kevin could find the butterflies in his stomach increasing (and he wasn't entirely sure it was due to his increasing proximity to Nazz) and Edd grew increasingly more distant as the time waged on, his eyes always downcast and not mentioning his quest, the circumstances of his demise, or the mating ritual of some rare species of bird.

He was also now the first to sleep at night, long before even Wilfred, avoiding all possible conversation beyond one-lined responses.

* * *

Their third night after what happened in the diner was spend quite differently than before, for once there was no desert, earlier that day they moved into a more wooded environment and now they were traveling down a full-scale forest, just as the officer had told them they would. There was still debris, they still found mattresses with ease to spend the night on, only they had to do so in a little clearing rather than right off the side of the road. Rolf was the first to sleep that night, his arms encircling Wilfred, leaving Kevin up with an Edd.

"What's the deal lately, Double Dork?" Kevin asked, his eyes watching the other male through the fire. The woods seemed eerily quiet due to the lack of bugs and animals, something that didn't matter when the nights before.

"What do you mean, Kevin?" Edd inquired, provoking a labored sigh from the other, but before Kevin could retort Edd's restlessness in the eeriness of the forest began to mount, and Edd shot up, grabbing their only flashlight and walking in the direction he thought the car was, simply wanting a change of scenery and a thicker sweater. It made him jump a little when he heard footsteps behind him, and a quick glance behind him told him it was Kevin. Their speed picked up after that, Kevin keeping a couple feet behind Edd, and soon they were out of earshot of Rolf and Wilfred.

"Dude, where are you even going? You didn't seem like the type to go on random ass midnight hikes. The car is the oth - fuck." Edd's dark frame stumbled and the light from the flashlight began to shake as he lost his balance and his body began to shift towards the steepening hill they were walking along. Kevin once remembered watching a television show where everything slowed in an emergency situation and it gave the protagonist time to decide what actions he should take, and he couldn't help but think it was a crock of shit because he barely had enough time to catch Edd's falling frame and pull it towards him as he lost his own balance and began to fall. Luckily the grass was soft enough and there were no large rocks on their way down so when they finally hit the bottom, Edd still pulled into Kevin arm, they seemed relatively unscatched, but as they separated, Edd turning his face away, Kevin found out that wasn't quite true.

"Fuck that hurts." were the first words out of Kevin's mouth as he tried to lift himself up off the ground and failed miserably, his left ankle causing his leg to buckle and his balance to falter. His palms, now dirty and bleeding, caught his body before his weight could come down on his injured ankle again and he gently lowered himself on the ground. "You 'kay over there, Double Dork?" His eyes fell on the little frame of his companion, whose face looked even paler in the moonlight as his eyes stared up the steep slope they just toppled down. When Kevin called his name, however, his face changed and he set to work.

It was as if he were a different person than the meek know-it-all Kevin had met five or so days ago. His first action was to roll up the leg of Kevin's jeans, inspecting the injury in the waning beam from the dying flashlight, poking and prodding until a sigh escaped his lips. "You only stretched the ligaments, if you had torn them it would have swelled faster and a lot more, can you rip a sleeve off of this please?" Edd unbuttoned the thin cardigan he was wearing and handed it to Kevin, who made quick work of dismembering the article of clothing. It took only a few minutes but soon they were sitting in silence next to each other, backs propped against a fallen log, Kevin practically staring at Edd who was pointedly not looking at his injured rescuer, a chilly wind sweeping past their bodies causing Edd to shudder.

"Here dude, take this." Kevin offered, beginning to removed his outer-most layer of clothing. Edd was now the same one they met on the side of the road, no longer focused on the injury at hand and stumbling through his awkwardness.

"N-n-no, I couldn't. You're injured, imagine how b-b-bad that would look on me!" Edd explained, holding his hands up in protest at the idea, causing Kevin's lips to turn down in a frown.

"Because people are watching. Just wear the fucking thing, you weigh like 60 pounds, I think you need it more than me." Kevin held out his dark purple hoodie and refused to put it back on, eventually forcing Edd to put his arms through the sleeves under threats of mild violence. "So, were you a med student or something? You're so smart and you handled that better than some EMT's I know would have."

"Both my parents are doctors, when I was younger I use to sit at home and read the various medical books scattered around the house. I was a science major in school, I focused on chemistry." Edd's face was caught somewhere between sadness and excitement as he spoke, something Kevin was going to ask him about until Edd opened his mouth and continued to talk. "That was how I died, y'know. It was an accident with my chemistry set. I was working in my dorm on my own stuff, it was late and I was tired, I drank the wrong liquid. It was really an accident but something must have gotten lost in translation, by the time I realized all this wasn't a dream I was already on a train. I keep thinking maybe this is all a dream and I'll wake up in a hospital bed, but I don't."

Edd sat with his knees tucked under him on the ground, his arms straight out and hands fidgeting in his lap fidgeting with the hem of Kevin's hoodie and Kevin stared at his sprained ankle, the discarded remains of Edd's cardigan now folded under it. Soon enough the silence that followed Edd's confession grew too much and Kevin moved to get up.

"I'm sure we can find another way back to the car if we try." Kevin mumbled as he struggled to lift himself off the ground. Double D jumped up, first in protest, to help Kevin. Edd held his hands out to Kevin, moving around the other's body until they were facing each other. Kevin let the smaller male take the bulk of his weight and soon they were standing, Kevin's injured foot supporting as little weight as possible. "This ain't so b-" Kevin moved to take a step, the movement proving too much from him, and stumbled forward, forcing Edd back against a tree. Kevin caught himself on the tree, his left hand pressed into the tree next to Edd's ear.

"Oh dear." Edd mumbled, looking like he was about to fold in on himself. His breath hit Kevin's face all at once, warm and welcoming, and Kevin could hear his breathing, though faint over the beating on his own heart. Kevin leaned toward the small male, who was looking up at him with his green eyes wide. It felt like eternity but soon Kevin could feel Edd's breath flow through his barely parted lips and over Kevin's as their mouth's almost met. Kevin froze their almost-kiss, trying to read the other's face or body language, trying to gauge whether or not he had consent to act this impulsively, and as he took in the other's now-closed eyes and the faltering to his breath Kevin closed the barely-there distance and pressed his lips to Edds.


End file.
